Grace Tagged Articles at Cinematical

X-Men Origins: Wolverine
After X-Men and X2, we expected a lot from our adamantium man. But rather than slipping in as another irresistible cinematic piece of high-action fun, we got a flick that didn't even begin to live up to our love of the claws. Jeffrey M. Anderson said a number of negative things about the film, including: "The movie's whitewashing of all the gray areas between good and evil is just one side effect of its dubious approach." Skip it. Also on Blu-ray.

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Easy Virtue
At it's most basic, this is that period piece with Jessica Biel. But it's also the film Eugene Novikov said: "is a droll and witty delight, a superb showcase for its cast, and a return to fine form for The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert director Stephan Elliott, who last turned in the unsettling but incomprehensible Eye of the Beholder nearly 10 years ago." Buy it. Also on Blu-ray.

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Grace
I can't say it better than Eric D. Snider, who said: "If you are the sort of person who might enjoy an effed-up gore-fest about a woman who delivers an undead baby, you can rest assured that Grace lives up to its potential." Also, it's "the most effective anti-procreation stories ever told." Rent it. Also on Blu-ray.

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Also out: Deadgirl, Fame, Michael Jackson: Never Surrender, Knights of Bloodsteel, Mail Order Bride, Next Day Air, Blood & Bone, The Desert Within, Bodyguard: A New Beginning, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Collection, Rest Stop: The Collection

So here we have it, the summer movie season finally winding down, and maybe it's just us, but a couple of peculiar trends have cropped up since May that we thought were worth bringing to light. For starters, we've only further elaborated on Eric's early indicator that puking was 'in' this year (seriously, it's gotten to be a pretty considerable theme), and as for the rest, you can check them out after the jump. Some spoilers follow. And if there are any corrections or additions to be made, please pipe up in the comments, and do so gently.

Here's a quick look at what's opening in limited release this weekend. If they're not playing where you live, keep an eye out as they make the rounds. And if all else fails, there's always DVD.

Grace (pictured) is one seriously effed-up horror film about a woman who gives birth to an undead baby. When one of the props required for your movie is a baby bottle filled with blood, you know you've got something special on your hands. I reviewed it for Cinematical at Sundance and said, "First-time writer/director Paul Solet ... proves himself adept both as a visual storyteller and as a guy who can make you crap your pants." Reviews at Rotten Tomatoes are evenly split between positive and negative. If this is your kind of movie, you probably know who you are. In New York and L.A. for now.

Spread, another Sundance premiere, stars Ashton Kutcher as a guy who has lots of sex with lots of women, then decides to do it professionally. (It was one of a few films at Sundance that, rather notoriously, didn't have press screenings.) At Rotten Tomatoes, 8 out of the 10 reviews are negative, though a few do offer praise for Kutcher's surprisingly good performance. Opens today on about 90 screens nationwide.

By Eric D. Snider (reprint from Sundance Film Festival 2009)

Among the items on the prop list for Grace are: one (1) baby bottle filled with blood and one (1) dead baby. Now that you know that, a review might be superfluous -- you already know whether or not you want to see this movie.

If you are the sort of person who might enjoy an effed-up gore-fest about a woman who delivers an undead baby, you can rest assured that Grace lives up to its potential. It's at least as effed-up as you'd expect, and first-time writer/director Paul Solet (expanding on his 2006 short) proves himself adept both as a visual storyteller and as a guy who can make you crap your pants.

Jordan Ladd stars as Madeline Matheson, a young woman who has finally, after years of trying, conceived a child with her dull husband, Michael (Stephen Park). Madeline's intrusive mother-in-law, Vivian (Gabrielle Rose), knows exactly which doctors Madeline should go to, which birthing practices she should follow, and even what food she should be eating (Vivian disapproves of Madeline's vegan lifestyle). But Madeline favors the New Age-y philosophies of her old friend Patricia (Samantha Ferris), a midwife with a medical degree who does holistic childbirth -- plopping out babies in pools of water while a CD of pan-flute music plays, that sort of thing.

After a slow several minutes of exposition and mood-setting, Solet kicks things into action with a series of crises that put Madeline's pregnancy at risk. An emergency-room stand-off between Patricia and the old family doctor that Vivian selected (Malcolm Stewart) is tense and unsettling, but that's only the beginning of Madeline's troubles. Eventually she gives birth to a stillborn baby girl -- except that the infant only stays dead for a few moments before reawakening. And I believe you know the tendencies of humans in horror movies who are brought back from the dead.

After a long flight on my part and a far longer drive for both of us, Scott Weinberg and I have finally arrived in Montréal for the FanTasia International Film Festival (their thirteenth, our first). The genre-heavy festival lasts for nearly three weeks; alas, we've but one to spare, so without much further ado, here's a look at what I've seen already and what I hope to see before Scott tips his own hand with a title or two to recommend.

Of the features playing, I can highly recommend Michael Paul Stephenson's Troll 2 doc, Best Worst Movie; the Aussie revenge thriller, The Horseman (not to be confused with the barely-seen Dennis Quaid vehicle, Horsemen); and Paul Solet's beautifully bloody baby horror, Grace. Those looking for something a bit stranger might end up being a bit more fond of Black and The Immaculate Conception of Little Dizzle than I was, though I also seemed more easily pleased by the Nazi zombies of Dead Snow than most, so I guess it all balances out. My enthusiasm for the ultra-kitschy likes of Alien Trespass and Lesbian Vampire Killers, not to mention the admittedly boundary-pushing Deadgirl, is all a bit less than what's already been mentioned, so let's just leave those at that.

Read the rest at HorrorSquad!

In some opposite-ish corner of the world right now (from me anyway), the New Zealand International Film Festival kicks off today for the rest of the month, before making further provincial rounds through next November. (Damn, now that's a film festival!) It makes all the more sense that people might want to plan ahead for the highlights, and what better way to do that than to bequeath some awards for the films right from the get-go?

Incredibly Strange programmer Ant Timpson (who's perfectly normal himself, I swear it; that's the name of their specifically oddball selections) has rightfully singled out SXSW '09 alums like Best Worst Movie, Drag Me to Hell, Grace, The Horseman and Winnebago Man for particular accolades (i.e. "Best Film to Show Filmmakers That Low-Budget Doesn't Mean Twenty-Somethings Sitting in Cafes Talking About Their Boring Relationships"), not to mention a couple of other picks.

Timpson sums up his mentality thusly: "I already know these films are very special. I don't need a jury to tell me what I already know. I'm giving these films awards in advance because 99% of the public don't care what films win awards AFTER they've screened, they want to know BEFORE they screen..." Believe me you, the man has a point. The real question is, how will such thinking play in the States?

I'll keep this short: There's a horror flick coming out later this year called Grace. Lots of people (including me and Eric Snider) like it a lot, such as former Cinematical scribe (and mother of five) Kim Voynar, who went to the Sundance screening after I basically commanded her to. When I saw her later she was both grateful (for recommending it) and angry (for not seeing it with her). Then it hit Austin and earned even more fans -- and not just horror geeks, mind you, although they're the ones who seemed to dig it the most.

The flick is still shuffling through the festival circuit, but Anchor Bay will deliver the DVD before year's end, and it looks like my pals over at FEARnet have scored the first look at the "red-band" (R rated) trailer for Grace. Click right here to take a look at the rather impressive new promo clip, and then come back for some friendly advice. (Pause.) OK, back? Good: This movie is not suitable for pregnant women. Frankly you should spend three years in jail if you show Grace to a pregnant woman. Ten years if you make it a double feature with Inside.

I know, it's been a while since I've written one of these gore-soaked missives, but the upside to that is ... we have a lot to talk about! And since I wrote this during a lazy Sunday (happy belated holidays, btw) I figure it's time to break out the candy-coated bullet points! Let's start out with a freaky fistful of upcoming DVD releases:

Currently strewn across shelves are Donkey Punch and Vinyan, two festival-heavy horror films that couldn't possibly be more different. One's about venal young jerks, and the other is about heartbroken (but stupid) parents. Really bad things happen to all of them.

This Tuesday we're getting the old-school-style monster movie Splinter, which is really quite good. If you like prickly monsters, that is. On the same day ... whoa. It looks like someone actually bothered to exhume flicks like Repossessed, Slaughter High, and My Best Friend Is a Vampire. That sound you just heard was my Netflix queue getting fatter.

Come the 21st we get J.T. Petty's The Burrowers, which played (and played well) at last year's Fantastic Fest, and Robert Hall's Laid to Rest, which is sort of like a non-snarky slasher throwback with a hint of Phantasm-style weirdness. Couldn't find a stranger double feature than these two, believe me.

And mark your calendars, gore-lovers, for April 28, because that's when Martyrs finally hits R1 DVD. According to the UK poster, Scoot Weinberg says it "makes Saw look like Sesame Street," which is one of the most shameless blurbs I've ever heard. Even if the guy is correct, brilliant, and really handsome. (Trust me, this is one rough horror movie.) Also on this Tuesday we'll get the unofficial Donnie Darko sequel, and a movie starring Amber Benson called One-Eyed Monster. I leave the jokes to you fine folks.

Welcome to the second episode of The Cinematical Roundtable, our latest podcast here at the site, where we'll speak with writers and readers alike about the latest in film offerings. Joining us this round is James Rocchi, formerly of Cinematical and currently of MSN Movies and countless other outlets, as we tackle several of the more independent titles that graced us with their presence at this year's SXSW Film Festival.

Again, please bear with the overwhelming ambiance of the International House of Pancakes (a South By staple, and not always by choice). In the weeks to come, the podcast will actually be produced in much more conducive conditions, but when in Austin, keeping it weird is the name of the game. With that in mind, your feedback is appreciated, and feel free to spread the word. Preferably the word 'podcast'. And 'Cinematical'. Yeah, that is two words, what of it?

That's what I thought...




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Today (3/14)is my first full day at SXSW 2009, and I've seen practically nothing. This day was spent doing some special stuff: This morning I was fortunate to sit on a panel discussion with a bunch of film critics like Shawn Levy, Marjorie Baumgarten, Gerald Peary, and Karina Longworth. The topic was "the shrinking (expanding?) profession of film criticism," and it certainly seemed like the attendees enjoyed what we had to say. One of the main topics was online "vs." print film criticism (the former is better for column space, but the latter brings a certain credibility that's also very important, etc.), but we also discussed various approaches to the craft, why we do what we do, and why it's so important to approach the job for the right reasons.

If I know the hardcore tech-heads who shuffle around behind the SXSW scenes, then this panel discussion should pop up online sooner or later, but be forwarned: I'm kinda loud.

Later in the day I sat it on a very well-attended Actor's Workshop that was run by longtime character actor Jeffrey Tambor, and it was an absolute blast. I actually sat down with Mr. Tambor after the event -- that piece will have to wait for later in the week -- but the man is a natural speaker and mentor: Brisk, quick, honest, and very funny, he spoke before hundreds of people (mostly people who are actors) and I suspect that most of 'em would have stayed if the workshop had run four hours instead of only two.

Tonight I get to introduce a few films (Best Worst Movie and Grace), which means a lot of running to different theaters and not having much time to watch anything NEW to me, but I have a whole week to get through and TONS of flicks at my disposal. As always, the Cine staff will be bringing you a lot more stuff as the week marches on. Thanks for reading!

Click here to view our complete coverage of SXSW 2009